Restless Spirits
by Dannyblue
Summary: (Complete) A crossover, in spirit, with THE SENTINEL. Some strange things are happening to Lex. What does it have to do with Chloe?
1. Default Chapter

Title: Restless Spirits (1/?)

Author: Dannyblue   
Email: dannyblue2@yahoo.com  
Summary: A crossover, in spirit, with THE SENTINEL. (I seem to be fond of those.) Some strange things are happening to Lex. What does it have to do with Chloe?

Rating: PG  
Category: Action/Adventure  
Pairings: None. This isn't really a 'shippy fic. More...friendshippy.

Spoilers: Story takes place some time in season 2, before "Magnetic", at least.  
Disclaimer: SMALLVILLE and its characters do not belong to me. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.  
Distribution: All you have to do is ask.  
Notes: I was writing a story called "Power Lost". Things were going pretty well, too. Then, I hit a wall. I got some advice that suggested writing an entirely different story might eventually help me to finish "Power Lost", so this is the different story.  
Feedback: Yes, please.

**PART ONE**

The dreams started soon after his rescue from the island.

He was alone in a densely wooded forest, surrounded by trees so tall and thick, only a few stray beams of sunlight could penetrate their branches.

As he walked through the shadows, he realized he has no idea where he was, or how he got there. He wore a silk shirt, tailored slacks, leather loafers made by hand. Hardly the proper attire for a hike through the woods. So, this wasn't a trip he'd expected to take.

A voice at the back of his mind was telling him he should be worried. That's what a person should do when they find themselves in a strange place, with no idea how they got there. But that didn't seem as important as following the feeling, the instinct, that pulled him forward. Drew him towards something he knew he had to find. So, he followed the path, winding his way through the trees, which were so close on both sides, he felt a little claustrophobic. He was lost in a maze created by nature, with no idea which way to go to reach 'civilization'.

Soon, he reached a clearing. At first, after being closed in, he was relieved to find such an open, sunlit space. But he didn't leave the safety of the trees. Because, standing in the middle of the clearing was a cougar.

Lex's heart leapt in his chest, a soft gasp escaped his lips. He pulled back into the shadows, stepped to the side so that he was partially concealed by one of the larger trees. It was a beautiful animal, tawny and sleek. Large and lethal. Lex wouldn't be surprised to find that it weighed almost as much as he did. Or that it could tackle him to the ground with very little effort.

His mind was filled with visions of his own body—broken, and bloodied, and lifeless—lying in the clearing. Never found until his flesh had rotted away, and there was nothing left of him but bones. His fear told him to leave, to turn and quietly disappear into the maze of trees. But something else made him stay.

Lex watched, with growing fascination, as the animal paced the clearing. It stalked from one border to the other. Muscles rippled beneath its skin, and a tail almost as long as its body swished behind it in agitation. It stopped to sniff at the ground. Then, seeming confused, it turned in a circle, searched for the scent it hadn't found. A loud, angry purr, one that sounded almost nervous, started to rumble deep in its chest. But the beast cut it off abruptly, as if unused to displaying so much emotion. This animal was used to being in control of itself. Only, now, some of its control was gone.

Half hidden behind a tree, Lex watched as the cougar started to pace again, its paws clawing at the ground. The animal seemed uneasy in its surroundings. This was its natural habitat, its home. And yet, somehow, it seemed…lost.

And Lex's fear started to fade. He had no doubt that the cougar, so nervous and agitated, was dangerous. Still, his fear faded. Because he knew how it felt.

Suddenly, the cougar stopped its pacing. The wind had shifted, and something had caught its attention. As the creature turned to look up, Lex followed its gaze.

Standing at the top of a hill that overlooked the trees was a fox. Looking down into the clearing, she—Lex knew instinctively it was a she—watched the cougar. 

She seemed closer than she could possibly be, so Lex could see her in detail. She was small, even for a fox; Lex figured you could carry her without much strain. Her fur was reddish gold, and glowed in the sunlight. Her lush tail, tipped in white, swished lazily from side to side. Considering how much smaller she was than the beast below, she should have been afraid. But there was only curiosity in her sharp, intelligent eyes.

The cougar stared up at the fox, its body still, its agitation gone. When it roared, Lex jumped, caught off guard by the sound. But he realized the roar wasn't a threat. More like a question.

If the fox was startled by the primal sound, she didn't show it. Instead, her head tilted to one side inquisitively, and she seemed to consider the question only the two animals could understand. Then, with a gesture that looked almost like a shrug, she turned and trotted away, vanishing as quickly as she had appeared.

Lex waited for the cougar to give chase. Or to start pacing again. For its agitation to return. But it didn't. The cougar remained still, calm. The confusion, the sense that it was lost, was still there. But some of its control had been restored.

Suddenly, it turned to stare at Lex…and the man realized the beast had known he was there all along. That it had been…waiting for him. Just like it had been waiting for the fox.

Captivated by the strength, the intelligence, he saw in the cougar's piercing gaze, Lex felt himself fall into its eyes.

____________________

Lex Luthor woke with a start, to find himself in another world. He was almost shocked to find the sunlit forest gone, his moonlit bedroom in its place. To feel the silk sheets draping his body, the plush pillow beneath his head.

He lay still for several moments, took one deep breath after another, His heart pounded in his chest, as he stared into the feline eyes that had imprinted themselves on his memory.

He knew he'd had the dream before. Felt the familiarity of it. But he'd never remembered it. Never remembered the forest, or the cougar, or the fox.

Until now.

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	2. Chapter Two

**PART TWO**  
  
  
Lex slammed the car door shut…and flinched. Eyes closed, he pressed his fingertips to his ear.   
  
Today, for some reason, every sound was like an assault on his sense of hearing. At breakfast this morning, the sound of the cook humming in the kitchen—a sound he usually ignored with ease—was like fingernails on a chalkboard; he'd wanted to march in and yell at the woman to shut up. As he drove into Metropolis, the blare of car horns, the whine of sirens, drove him crazy. Every ring of the telephone grated on his nerves.   
  
"Damned headache," he muttered. At about noon, the dull pain settled at the base of his skull and wouldn't let go.   
  
Slowly, Lex opened his eyes…and winced. A beam of sunlight glittered off of the car parked in front of his. It was like a sharp, high beam pointed directly at his eyes. And the late-afternoon sun suddenly seemed too bright, like a naked bulb glaring down on the street. Squinting, he pulled his sunglasses out of his jacket pocket and put them on. But the darkly tinted lenses didn't help much. And his headache was even worse, if that was possible.  
  
With a tired sigh, Lex walked around the hood of his car. He really didn't want to do this today. He wanted to go home, lock himself away from the noise. But he'd promised to meet Lana to discuss some ideas she had for the Talon. So, here he was.  
  
Lex pushed through the door of the Talon, and froze. The sound hit him like a wave crashing against a rocky beach. The sounds of the busy coffee house—music, talking, laughter, clattering cups—surrounded him, pounded against his aching head. It was so overwhelming, he almost turned and walked right back out the door. But Lana, who was serving customers at nearby table, spotted him. Smiling, she held up her index finger and mouthed, 'Just a minute.' Which meant she was busy right now, and would get to him as soon as she could.  
  
As his business partner hurried towards the counter, Lex clenched his jaw and stepped further into the room, into the noise. As he removed his sunglasses, he pressed his fingertips against his temple.  
  
"Hi, Lex."  
  
Startled, Lex turned. Clark stood behind him, the strap of his backpack slung over one shoulder.  
  
"Clark." Lex straightened his shoulders, wiped every trace of pain from face. "I wasn't expecting to see you, here."  
  
"Well, I was supposed to be meeting Chloe, but she's running late. Probably got busy at _The Torch_ and forgot all about the time." He glanced at his watch. "And I gotta get home."  
  
"That's too bad. We haven't had much chance to see each other since…I got back." Lex paused as memories of the island, tried to push forward. Quickly, he pushed them back down. "It would've been nice to catch up over a cup of coffee."  
  
"I know. Actually, I was thinking of dropping by the mansion this weekend. Maybe we can play a little pool." He frowned, uncertain. "I mean, if that's okay."  
  
"Sure," Lex said, although he was already having second thoughts. The effort it took to listen to what the young man said, to think and respond, made the his headache even worse, and they'd only been talking for a few minutes. He could only imagine the strain of trying to hold a real conversation for several hours. Still, he said, "Drop by any time."  
  
Clark grinned. "Great! See ya then." And he hurried out the door.  
  
Lex crossed the room, and sat down in one of the vacant booths. He took a deep breath and tried to relax into his seat. To push away the noise. And, as he concentrated, it did fade. A little.  
  
He was so tired. After he woke from the dream, he couldn't get back to sleep. It had been so vivid. So real. He'd lain awake for hours, mind racing as he tried to understand what it meant.   
  
The cougar wasn't hard to figure out. The animal represented _him_. Like Lex, it seemed lost, even though it was in familiar surroundings. Which was exactly how Lex had felt since his rescue from the island. Metropolis, Smallville, the mansion. He was familiar with all of these places. But none of them felt…right. It was like wearing the wrong skin. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn't get completely comfortable.   
  
So, he knew what the cougar represented. But what about the fox?  
  
At first, he'd thought the fox was Helen. Fox's were known for their cunning, and she'd certainly been that. But no. The fox in the dream had lacked any sense of deception or guile, malice or greed. Instead, it exuded intelligence, curiosity.   
  
Maybe the fox didn't represent a person at all. Maybe…  
  
A sudden crash made Lex jump in his seat. It was like hearing two cars slam together at high speed. The sound reverberated through his skull, pounded at his temples from the inside. He pressed his hands over his ears, but it didn't stop the sound from clawing at him.  
  
Turning, Lex saw that a customer had dropped her coffee cup on the floor. That was the crash he heard. That was the sound that almost knocked him out of his seat.  
  
The Talon was quiet for a moment as customers looked to see what had happened. But, as they went back to their business, the noise resumed. And, for Lex, the renewed din was almost unbearable.  
  
Forcing his hands away from his ears, Lex stood. Again, he thought about leaving. He needed to get away from the noise. To find somewhere quiet.  
  
Lex crossed the room, noise assaulting him from all sides. As he walked down the hallway that lead to the bathrooms, which Lana had decorated with as much care as the rest of the Talon, a painting caught his attention. As he turned towards it, splashes of color filled his vision. Red. Blue. Purple. A rainbow of vivid, living color. And the painting seemed to move closer and closer, until he could see every line, every brush stroke. Until the noise that pounded against him faded away.   
  
Lex felt himself falling into the painting, just as he'd fallen into the cougar's eyes in the dream. He could feel that this was wrong, but he couldn't stop it. So he fell deeper and deeper, until there was nothing left but the swirls of color. And he could hear the red. Smell the blue. Taste the purple…  
  
*****  
  
  
Pausing by the door, Chloe looked for Clark. Her eyes searched the room from one side to the other. And she wasn't all that surprised to find no sign of her best friend.  
  
"Damn," she muttered.   
  
Eyes closed, Chloe sighed. She hadn't meant to stand him up. In fact, she was just about to leave the _Torch_ when Rene Gilbert stopped by. She said she had a story Chloe would be interested in. It seemed Rene, and a dozen or so other students, were convinced there were ghosts haunting the lake.  
  
At first, Chloe thought Rene was pulling her leg. Everyone knew the editor of the _Torch_ was interested in the weird and bizarre. Why not hoax her with some fake ghost story? Wouldn't that be a hoot?  
  
When Rene finally convinced her she was telling the truth, Chloe wanted to hear every detail of what she'd experienced. Then she had to talk to Rene's boyfriend, who was waiting outside. It seemed he didn't want to tell Chloe his story until Rene made sure she wouldn't laugh in his face.  
  
Filled with the excitement of a new story, Chloe hit the Internet, searching for information on ghosts and ghost sightings. And forgot all about her promise to meet Clark at the Talon.   
  
Fingers worrying the strap of her over-sized purse, Chloe walked towards the counter. She'd grab a coffee to go, then head over to the Kent farm to apologize for standing Clark up. He'd be completely understanding about the entire thing, which would make her feel that much more guilty. But it had to be done.  
  
Chloe was halfway across the room when someone crashed into her.  
  
"Hey!" she cried as the contents of the guy's cup spilled onto her coat. Then, "Ow!" as the scalding hot liquid soaked through her sleeve and reached the skin beneath.  
  
"Sorry," the guy muttered. With a careless shrug, he went on his merry way.   
  
Glaring after him, Chloe muttered, "Hey, don't worry about me. I'm fine. You know, except for the second degree burn I got because of you. Jerk."  
  
Actually, the burning had already stopped. Still, it wouldn't hurt to splash some cold water on her arm. And on her sleeve, while she was at it. This was one of her favorite coats, and she kinda didn't want it ruined by a coffee stain.  
  
The young reporter made her way towards the bathrooms. As she entered the hall, she glanced woefully at the brown splotch that now stained her sleeve. Her attention on the stain, she almost walked into the person standing in the middle of the hallway.  
  
"Sorry," she said as she took a quick step back. Then, she realized who she'd almost bumped into. "Oh, hey, Lex."  
  
The man didn't react. He continued to stare forward, all of his attention on the abstract painting that adorned the wall.  
  
"Yeah, I like it, too," Chloe said, turning to study the canvas. "I don't get it, but I like it. Then again, I like finger paintings, too. I guess this is just a more adult, sophisticated version."  
  
Still, no reaction.   
  
Frowning, Chloe turned to stare at him. Lex Luthor had never struck her as the quiet type. He always had something to say. Carefully thought out, sure, but something. A quip. A rye observation. A greeting, at the very least.   
  
"Mr. Luthor?" Chloe asked, just as she realized something was wrong. Lex's body was stiff, frozen. His stare was vacant, empty. And, unless he was doing it faster than her eye could see, wasn't blinking. At all.  
  
A seed of worry taking root in her chest, Chloe stepped closer to him. Taking a deep breath, she waved her hand in front of his face. And, once again, he didn't react.  
  
"Oh, my god," Chloe muttered, worry turning to panic. Something was definitely, seriously wrong. Lex Luthor was catatonic.  
  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)


	3. Chapter 3

**PART THREE**  
  
  
Chloe waved her hand in front of Lex Luthor's face again. And again. Back and forth, faster and faster, until her hand was little more than a blur. And, just like before, the man didn't react. Didn't blink. Didn't flinch. Nothing. He just stared at the painting, as if nothing else in the world existed.  
  
"Oh, God." Chloe whispered as she let her arm drop. Eyes wide, she stared at the young millionaire. He stood there, stiff and still as a statue. The lights were on, but nobody was home. "I've gotta…do something," she decided. But what did a person do in a situation like this? Besides stand there like an idiot trying to figure out what to do?  
  
A sudden, unpleasant thought occurred to her. She threw an uneasy glance towards the hall entrance. What if someone else saw him like this? He'd probably hate that. And news of the incident would be all over town in an hour. Lex wouldn't be able to go anywhere in Smallville without people whispering behind his back even more than they did now. And, for some reason, the thought bothered her. Why, she wasn't sure. She and Lex weren't exactly pals. They were barely casual acquaintances. To be honest, Chloe would kill for an exclusive, newsworthy picture of Lex to plaster across the front page of the _Torch_. In fact, she could take out her digital camera and snap a quick shot or two right now. She could even see the headline.  
  
WHAT AILS THE LUTHOR HEIR?  
  
But, for some reason, the thought repelled her.   
  
Knowing someone could walk down the hall any minute, Chloe grabbed Lex's arm with both hands. "Mr. Luthor!" she exclaimed as she tried to shake him. "Lex!"  
  
*****  
  
  
For Lex Luthor, the world outside the painting no longer existed. He knew it was still there, but no longer felt connected to it. Instead, he existed within the painting. He spiraled down, deeper and deeper into the sea of colors, until they had consumed every one of his senses. The blue felt cool, like an autumn breeze. The green smelled fresh, like newly cut grass. The red tasted hot, spicy. The purple was like the trill of a flute.   
  
Then, he heard something else. Something from outside. It was a faint, rhythmic sound, like the pounding of a distant drum.  
  
_Thump-thump…Thump-thump._  
  
Fascinated, Lex listened to the pounding grow louder. As he focused on the sound, the colors started to darken, to dim. One by one, they released his senses.  
  
Suddenly, he felt a strange, _swooshing_ sensation, like there was a cord wrapped around his waste and someone had decided to pull him out. He watched the painting speed further and further away, watched it fall into a deep, bottomless well. And that sound got closer and closer, calling him back.  
  
_Thump-thump…Thump-thump._  
  
*****  
  
Lex gasped, his return to reality like being doused in ice water.  
  
"Oh, thank god," he heard a female voice whisper. But he couldn't see who it was. The lights in the hallway were too bright. They blazed down on him, blinding him.  
  
Eyes squeezed shut, Lex staggered away from the painting. Only, once he started, his balance departed, momentum took over, and he couldn't seem to stop.  
  
"Okay, so we're going this way," said the mystery voice. Lex realized she was holding his arm, which was all that kept him from falling. But, apparently, she wasn't strong enough to stop his backwards progress. So she staggered with him across the hall until his back slammed into the opposite wall. "Yeah, you can lean here. Leaning's good."  
  
So he leaned, one hand pressed to his head, and the ache he'd managed to escape for a few moments.  
  
"Are you okay?" the voice asked. "What happened? Whatever, it totally freaked me out. Do you need a doctor or something? I've got my cell phone. Should I call somebody?"  
  
As the flow of words continued, Lex felt his headache easing somewhat. And it no longer felt like two high-powered flashlight beams were being directed at his eyelids. He also realized the voice was familiar.  
  
"Miss Sullivan?" he asked, interrupting the onslaught of questions. Hesitant, he opened his eyes, relieved to find they were back to normal.  
  
Chloe stood in front of him, worry puckering her brow. "What's going on?" she asked. "What happened? I mean, you were totally out of it for a good five minutes."   
  
Five minutes. It had felt…longer. Like hours.  
  
Frowning as his mind went over what happened, Lex glanced at the painting. The experience had been strange. Frightening. Exhilarating. Unpleasant, but almost pleasant at the same time.  
  
"Are you alright?" Chloe finally demanded.   
  
As he looked back at the eager young reporter, Lex realized something. The sound was still there.  
  
_Thump-thump…Thump-thump._  
  
Soft at first, the rhythmic pounding sound grew steadily louder,   
  
_Thump-thump…Thump-thump._  
  
until it drowned out any other sounds, even the ambient noise of the Talon just beyond the entryway. But unlike the other noises that had plagued him all day, this one didn't seem like an assault on his sense of hearing. In fact, it was soothing. Calming. Filling his head, dulling the edges of the headache that had been stabbing at him since this morning.  
  
"Lex?"  
  
As he listened to the pounding, he noticed his vision start to dim. As he felt his eyelids droop, he realized he was getting lost in the sound just as he'd gotten lost in the painting.  
  
"Lex?!" Chloe exclaimed, grabbing his arm, snapping him back to reality. And he noted, with interest, that the pounding seemed a little faster.  
  
_Thump-thump-thump-thump._  
  
"Okay, that's it," the young reporter said, frantic. She reached into her purse. "I'm calling someone."  
  
Knowing instinctively that letting her call someone was a bad idea, Lex held up one hand. "No," he said, enough command in his voice to halt her movements. With some effort, he managed to push the sound away enough to focus on the present. "I'm fine, Chloe. My mind just…wandered."  
  
"Uh-huh," the blond said, skepticism written on her face. "That's why I found you standing like a statue in front of that painting. That's why you didn't blink when I waved my hand in your face or yelled in your ear. I mean, you weren't blinking at all, Lex!"  
  
As he imagined the scene she must've walked in on, Lex sighed. He didn't know Gabe Sullivan's daughter all that well. But he knew from reading her paper that, once her curiosity was piqued about something, she didn't let it go until she had answers.   
  
But, at the moment, he wasn't up to a verbal sparring match. Couldn't come up with a logical explanation for the way she'd found him. Couldn't worry that she was the eager young editor of Smallville High's newspaper. His headache was dulled, but it wasn't gone. And that sound   
  
_Thump-thump…Thump-thump._  
  
was distracting.   
  
"I'm sure the situation must seem a little strange to you, Chloe. But, I assure you, I'm alright."  
  
"What?" Chloe started to argue. "Lex, you can't tell me…"  
  
"I'm sorry," he interrupted, "but I'm late for an appointment at the mansion. Excuse me."  
  
Leaving her there, too startled by his abrupt departure to speak, Lex walked away. As he stepped out of the hallway and into the Talon proper, he braced himself for the onslaught of noise that would assault his ears. Only, it didn't. In fact, the noise level in the room didn't seem any higher than usual.   
  
Sighing in relief, Lex walked towards the exit. And, as he neared the door, that thumping sound faded.  
  
*****  
  
Chloe's mouth was still hanging open. She couldn't believe. She'd just found Lex Luthor in the weirdest position imaginable, and he'd just walked away without explaining a thing. And, no, 'I'm fine' wasn't an explanation. It was stonewalling. Which she supposed he was an expert at. Still, considering the condition he was in, she could have at least made it harder for him to get away with it.   
  
"Yep, those interviewing skills are razor sharp today." Taking a deep, frustrated breath, Chloe pressed her hand over her heart, which was still racing. For a minute there, when it seemed Lex was about to take another trip to La La Land, she'd panicked. If he had blacked out again, she would have been in the same position as before: trying to figure out what to…  
  
_Blackouts!_  
  
The thought was so loud, it actually startled her. Was it possible what she'd walked in on was Lex having a blackout? She'd heard that he was pretty sick when he returned from that island. Were blackouts a symptom of his illness?  
  
"In which case," she muttered, eyes widening in horror, "should the man who drove off a bridge when he _wasn't_ blacking out really be behind the wheel of a high performance sports car?"  
  
Thoughts of twisted metal and exploding gas tanks galvanized her into action. Chloe took off. She ran down the hallway. Navigated the coffee house's maze of tables and customers. Uttered a quick apology whenever she bumped into someone.   
  
Chloe hit the door with enough force to make her palms sting. Cursing under her breath, she hurried out onto the sidewalk. And arrived just in time to see Lex's car disappear into the distance.  
  
"Crap!" she hissed, dragging a hand through her hair. "Way to go, Sullivan." Not knowing what else to do, she crossed her arms and just stood there, hoping Lex was as fine as he'd said he was.  
  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)


	4. Chapter Four

**PART FOUR**  
  
  
Lex didn't remember why he'd gone to the Talon in the first place until he was already back at the mansion.  
  
"Dammit," he muttered as he walked into his office. Although, in his current condition, he couldn't imagine having a coherent conversation with Lana Lang about making improvements to the coffee house. In fact, in his current condition, he didn't feel fit to do much anything.  
  
Sighing, he sat down at his desk. On the drive home, his headache had returned with a vengeance. The sound of the engine—usually a soft purr of controlled power—was like a chainsaw running at high speed right next to his ear. And, worse than that, his clothes had started to bother him. The sensation only lasted for a few minutes. But, for those few minutes, it had felt like sandpaper was being scraped against his skin.   
  
Elbows resting on the arms of his chair, Lex pressed his fingertips to his temples. Something was happening to him. Something he couldn't ignore, or shake off.   
  
Now that he thought about it, he'd been having similar episodes since he'd returned from the island. Lights too bright. Food too spicy or salty. Sounds too loud. But those episodes never lasted long, sometimes only for a few seconds. He was able to explain them away. He was tired. He'd been working for too long. The cook had over-seasoned the food.  
  
But, now, his senses seemed to be out of control. Everything was sharper, brighter, louder. And his head wouldn't stop pounding.  
  
Lex closed his eyes. Maybe it was stress, everything that had happened to him finally catching up to him. Being stranded on the island. Facing the truth about Helen. The cat-and-mouse game he was playing with his father.  
  
Stress was a good explanation. But, never one to hide from reality, Lex had to consider another possibility. Something he'd read long ago, but never thought about again until now.  
  
Heightened senses were a sign of mental illness.  
  
*****  
  
Chloe stepped into the barn…and tripped.  
  
"Hey!" she exclaimed, doing a skip and a hop to keep from falling flat on her face. As she caught her balance, she did a quick body check. She didn't feel any pain anywhere. But, as she looked down at the rock she'd tripped over, she saw that it had scratched up one of her brand new boots.  
  
Sighing, Chloe let her chin drop to her chest. First, the coffee stain on her coat. Now, damaged footwear. Looked like the wardrobe gremlins really had it in for her today.  
  
"Chloe?"  
  
Glancing up, Chloe saw her best friend looking down at her from his loft. "Hey, Clark. Your mom told me you were in here."  
  
"Yeah." Then, he frowned. "Are you okay? It sounded like…"  
  
"Just had a klutz moment," Chloe interrupted. "No big." Pushing her hands into her pockets, she took a deep breath. "So, can I come up? Or are you, maybe, holding grudges against people who stood you up this afternoon?"  
  
"Wellllll," Clark drawled, assuming a stern expression. But it looked like he was trying not to smile. "I'm actually in a pretty forgiving mood right now, so I guess you can stay."  
  
"Gee, thanks." Grinning, Chloe climbed the stairs. "And I am so sorry for not meeting you at the Talon. I swear, I was just about to leave the _Torch_ when something came up, and I lost all track of time."  
  
"I figured it was something like that. So, what happened?"  
  
"You won't believe this one." Chloe dropped her heavy purse on the coffee table and sat down on the sofa. "Apparently, some of our fellow students believe the lake is haunted?"  
  
Clark eyebrows flew up in surprise. "Since when?"  
  
"Since a few weeks ago. What was once a popular make out spot isn't anymore. All of the sweet young lovers have been run off by eerie sounds and ethereal apparitions."  
  
"Ghosts?" Clark sounded skeptical. "You believe that?"  
  
"Not really," Chloe admitted. "Even though I think it would be pretty cool. But I checked on the Internet about ghost sightings, and you wouldn't believe some of the things that have been mistaken for ghosts. Swamp gas. Frozen pipes. Even the wind blowing through tree branches a certain way. Still, I'll probably go out to the lake to check it out some time this week. It couldn't hurt." She shrugged.  
  
"Well, at least I know I was stood up for a good reason." Smiling slightly, Clark looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "You doing research about a ghost you don't even think is real."  
  
Chloe rolled her eyes. "I knew I got off too easy. You know, I shouldn't be letting you guilt trip me like this. At least you had company while you were waiting for me."  
  
Clark looked confused. "Company?"  
  
"Yeah. When I was at the Talon looking for you, I bumped into Lex. And I just assumed you were hanging out with him until you had to leave."  
  
"Nope. He got there just as I was on my way out. We barely got the chance to say 'hi'."   
  
"Oh." Leaning back in her seat, she tried to keep her voice casual. "Did he seem okay to you? I mean, it seemed like he wasn't feeling too well."  
  
"Really?" Clark shook his head. "He seemed fine to me. But, like I said, I only saw him for a few minutes."  
  
"Oh," Chloe said again, and was barely able to hide her disappointment. On the drive over here, she'd debated over how much to tell Clark about Lex's 'blackout'. She'd finally decided not to say anything specific. She had a feeling this wasn't something Lex wanted spread around. And even though he hadn't asked her not to say anything, she felt like she shouldn't.  
  
Still, she'd wondered if Clark might know something. If so, she'd hoped he'd tell her if she gave him an opening. But, whatever was going on with Lex, Clark was clueless.  
  
"By the way," Clark was saying, "Principal Reynolds stopped me in the hall today. He wanted to compliment me on the work I've been doing at the _Torch_. He also had some pretty nice things to say about the paper."  
  
"Really." Chloe forced a smile. "Well, I'm always open to praise. Even if it's second-hand."  
  
As Clark described his conversation with the school principal, Chloe decided to stop thinking about Lex Luthor. For now.  
  
*****  
  
Lex turned in hours earlier than usual. Not only was he exhausted but, in his current condition, he couldn't seem able to _do_ anything.  
  
He tried to work on his computer. For ten, fifteen minutes, everything would be fine. Then, the words would jump off of the screen until it seemed like they were mere inches from his face.  
  
He tried to listen to music, but that only annoyed him. The concerto kept fading in and out. Too soft. Too loud. Too soft. Too loud.  
  
He tried to read. He was turning the first page of the book when he got a paper cut. It felt like he'd dipped his finger in acid.  
  
Finally, sleep seemed like his only escape. His only chance for peace.  
  
As he left his private bathroom, Lex stripped off his bath robe. Tossing it on a chair, he turned…and froze. Standing there, next to his bed, was the cougar.  
  
Lex gasped, his heart jumping into his throat. The animal stood there, seeming as real as the floor beneath Lex's feet, tawny fur glowing in the soft lamplight. Motionless, impassive, it stared at Lex with wise, feline eyes.  
  
"No," Lex whispered, as his heart started to thunder in his chest. Suddenly, he was back on the island, running from a madman who was a figment of his own imagination. Pointing a gun at his father, hands shaking, ranting like a lunatic.  
  
"No!" Lex growled, squeezing his eyes shut. His hands fisted at his side, bluntly cut fingernails digging into his palms.   
  
He stood that way for several moments, as still as the cougar had been. Mind racing, heart pounding, head aching. Finally, he dared to open his eyes.  
  
The cougar was gone.  
  
A feeling of dread spreading through him, Lex dropped into the chair. Maybe he was losing his mind after all.  
  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)


	5. Chapter Five

**PART FIVE**  
  
  
Chloe was glad she'd stopped at the Talon for an after-school cappuccino.  
  
Lex Luthor was sitting at a table, a cup of coffee at his elbow. His eyes were closed, and he was pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.  
  
Chloe looked up at the ceiling and whispered a quiet, "Thank you."   
  
When she realized Clark couldn't tell her anything about Lex's 'condition', Chloe decided there was nothing left to do but ask the man himself. Problem was, Lex wasn't someone she talked to every day. Weeks could go by when the only time she saw him was speeding by in one of his sports cars.  
  
She'd thought about marching up to the mansion and politely asking to see him. At which point, the butler would probably tell her, politely, to get lost.  
  
She was just about ready to ask Clark if she could tag along the next time he went to the mansion to visit or make a delivery or just to visit. Then, like an answer to her prayers, the man himself was delivered to her on a silver platter. No fuss, no muss.  
  
Trying not to smile like the cat that ate the canary, she approached her prey. Certain the music had masked the sound of her approach, Chloe stopped next to Lex's table. Thinking that catching him by surprise would give her an advantage, she opened her mouth to speak.  
  
"Hello, Miss Sullivan." Casually, Lex lowered his hand and opened his ice blue eyes.  
  
Startled, Chloe snapped her mouth shut. So much for the element of surprise. "Um, how did you know it was me? Unless you were peaking."  
  
A slight smile curled his lips. "No peaking. It was your perfume. It's the same scent you were wearing yesterday."  
  
Reflexively, Chloe sniffed. She'd only put on a little perfume this morning. So little, in fact, that she might as well not have bothered. But it was a birthday present from her dad, and it made her feel guilty not to use it. Anyway, she would have thought it had long faded by now. She certainly couldn't smell it anymore.  
  
"Wait a minute." A frown puckered her brow. "You remembered what kind of perfume I was wearing?"  
  
And Lex seemed mildly surprised by this revelation. "Apparently so."  
  
Not knowing how weirded out to be, Chloe helped herself to a seat. "Well, I guess it's part of the 'millionaire playboy' package, huh? It must really impress the ladies when you can tell them what kind of perfume they have on."  
  
"You'd have to ask 'the ladies' whether they'd be impressed by that or not. And, please, have a seat."  
  
"Thanks," Chloe said, her grin unrepentant. She folded her arms on top of the table. "I'm kind of surprised to see you here today. Especially, you know, after what happened yesterday."  
  
And, just like that, Lex's expression became guarded, cautious. "Actually, I'm here to talk to Lana before she leaves to visit Nell for the weekend. And, as for yesterday, nothing happened that's of any consequence."  
  
"Oh, come on, Lex. I know what I saw, and you can't call that nothing. I mean, I was the one who was yelling at you for at least five minutes before you even seemed to realize I was there."  
  
Lex didn't comment. Instead, his expression became even more closed off. If that was even possible.  
  
Chloe let out a sigh. "Look, this is strictly off the record, okay. I just want to know what's going on. Because if you have a blackout while driving, and wrap your car around a telephone poll, I'd at least like to know I tried to do _something_ to keep it from happening." Exasperated, Chloe shrugged and threw up her hands. She wasn't explaining this right. She wasn't even sure _she_ knew what she meant.  
  
Across from her, Lex leaned back in his seat. For a long, silent moment, he just stared at her, seeming to size her up. Finally, he said, "While I appreciate your concern, you don't have to worry. I've never had an…episode like the one I had yesterday before. And I very much doubt there will be another one."  
  
"And you know that how?"  
  
"I just do."  
  
Chloe rolled her eyes. Typical Luthor. He probably thought all he had to do to keep from getting a cold was decide not to get sick.  
  
"Does this have anything to do with what, um—" realizing, mid-sentence, that she was about to tread on delicate ground, Chloe hesitated "—with, you know, what happened to you on the island? Rumor had it you were pretty sick. Maybe blackouts are a symptom of your illness."  
  
"It wasn't a blackout." Lex picked up his coffee cup. As he realized the contents were cold, he frowned and promptly put it back down. "I never lost consciousness, or awareness. As I told you yesterday, my mind was just…somewhere else."  
  
"Uh huh." Chloe mumbled under her breath. Rolling her eyes again, she let her gaze wander towards the counter. "And I'm Principal Reynolds sex slave."  
  
Lex smirked. "Really, Chloe. What would Gabe say if he heard you talk that way?"  
  
Chloe flushed scarlet under Lex's amused gaze. As embarrassment rolled over her in waves, she barely suppressed the urge to groan. When was she going to learn to keep her big mouth shut?   
  
_Wait a minute, _Chloe thought, sitting up straight in here seat. _How did he hear me?_ She'd mumbled the words so low, she'd barely been able to hear them herself. And Lex was sitting on the other side of the table. Not to mention the fact that there was music playing in the background.  
  
Frowning, she looked at the young millionaire, about to ask how he'd heard her. But, once again, his eyes were closed, and he was messaging his right temple.  
  
"Headache?" she asked.  
  
Absently, Lex nodded.  
  
Chloe's mind immediately jumped back to yesterday's episode. Maybe headaches were another symptom. "Well, I have just the thing for that. As much time as I spend staring at computer screens, it pays to have a portable pharmacy on hand." Opening her purse, she started to route through the cavernous bag. "I've got aspirin. I've got Advil. And…Ah ha!" She pulled out a small, white bottle, and held it up triumphantly. "Extra strength Tylenol."  
  
Lex glanced at the bottle and shook his head. "I don't think that will help," he said. "Besides, that bottle has expired."  
  
"What?" Surprised, Chloe turned the bottle to face her. The expiration date (6/2003) was etched into the side. The lights in the Talon weren't the brightest. She had to hold the bottle close to her face, and squint a little, to see the small, white numbers. How on Earth had Lex been able to see them from where he was sitting? "I guess this is the bottle I got out of my dad's medicine cabinet."  
  
"Hmmm," Lex muttered. But he didn't really seem to be listening. In fact, he suddenly seemed a million miles away.  
  
*****  
  
Lex hadn't lied when he told Chloe he had a headache. Over the past few days, when hadn't he? But that wasn't what had his attention now.  
  
_Thump-thump. Thump-thump._  
  
It was that sound. The same soft, rhythmic pounding he'd heard yesterday, but forgotten as he tried, somehow, to deal with his runaway senses. With the fact that he'd imagined seeing a cougar in his bedroom. With the fact that maybe he hadn't quite recovered from his stint on the island.  
  
_Thump-thump. Thump-thump._  
  
He realized that the sound had been there for quite a while, just too faint to be heard over the chatter, the music. Still, he'd been aware of it subconsciously. The way someone is aware when something comforting and familiar is nearby.  
  
Just like yesterday, the sound was soothing. Calming. And, the more he focused on it, the more his headache dulled.   
  
Lex sighed, grateful for the respite. So grateful that, for the moment, he didn't care what the sound was, or where it was coming from. As he'd told Chloe, he'd known her Tylenol wouldn't make the pain go away. He'd tried much more powerful, prescription medications, none of which had any effect. In fact, not only did they not ease the pain, some of them only made his erratic senses worse.  
  
So far, this rhythmic pounding was the only thing that had helped.  
  
A sudden crash startled Lex back to reality. On the other side of the room, someone had dropped a coffee cup. Only, unlike yesterday, the sound wasn't like two cars slamming together inches from his head. It just sounded like a coffee cup shattering as it hit the floor.  
  
Across from him, Chloe had one hand pressed to her chest. "Geez!" she exclaimed, glaring at the cup-dropper. "Give a girl a heart attack, why doncha."  
  
And Lex noticed the rhythm of the pounding had changed. It was faster, louder.  
  
_Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump_  
  
Lex frowned. It almost sounded like…  
  
"I am way too young for the CCU," Chloe was saying. Turning back to Lex, she smiled.  
  
It was a smile Lex couldn't return. Because suddenly, like a bolt of lightening out of the sky, he realized what he was hearing. What that soothing, rhythmic pounding was.  
  
It was Chloe Sullivan's heartbeat.  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)


	6. Chapter Six

**PART SIX**  
  
  
**_Author's Note:_**_ For you SENTINEL fans out there, assume that this story takes place before "The Sentinel, By Blair Sandburg". Or, if you prefer, just assume that that particular episode never happened.   
  
For those who haven't seen the SENTINEL, you can check it out weekdays at __8 am__ on the Sci-Fi Channel._  
  
____________________________________  
  
  
"Here we are," Chloe said as she walked into the living room. "Hot popcorn, fresh from the microwave. Extra salt. Extra butter." As she sat down on the sofa, she placed the bowl on the coffee table.  
  
Pete leaned forward in his seat and eyed the popcorn suspiciously. "Is that real butter, or that butter-like substance they use at movie theaters?"  
  
"It's the real deal," Chloe promised. "Melted it myself."  
  
"Cool." He reached into the bowl and grabbed a fistful of popcorn. "I'm ready. Start her up."  
  
Chloe pointed the remote at the VCR and pushed PLAY. As the movie whirred to life, she turned towards the third member of their party. "Clark, I still can't believe you haven't seen _Jeepers Creepers_."  
  
"Seriously, man," Pete said, his mouth half full. "I mean, they already made the sequal, and you haven't even seen the original, yet. What's up with that?"  
  
"So sue me." Clark sounded a little peeved. Then again, they'd been teasing him for the past hour. "I neglected to see a movie the minute it came out. Lock me up and throw away the key."  
  
Suppressing a grin, Chloe gave him a look of mock concern. "Geez, Clark. Touchy much."  
  
As Pete snickered, Clark rolled his eyes and turned to watch the sneak previews. Which weren't really sneak previews since all of the movies had come out already.  
  
With a happy sigh, Chloe sank back into the sofa cushions. This was fun. She and the guys used to spend Friday nights like this all of the time; watching movies, pigging out on junk food. But such movie fests had gotten fewer and farther between.  
  
It just proved that complaining could be a good thing. This afternoon, she'd told the guys how lonely the house would be with Lana in Metropolis, and her dad working late again. Next thing you know, Pete had suggested renting a movie and coming over to keep her company, and Clark was making a list of the snacks they'd need to enjoy the movie to its fullest.  
  
"So," Pete began. He took a can of soda from the end table and popped the top. "How's the ghost hunting going?"  
  
Chloe sighed. "Fine, I guess. I did the background research, interviewed the witnesses. I suppose I'll go out to the lake tomorrow. Who knows? I might just get a picture of our friendly neighborhood Casper."  
  
Clark frowned. "You don't sound very enthusiastic about it."  
  
"I guess not," Chloe admitted. When she first heard the story, she'd been pretty interested. In fact, she got so caught up in researching it, she forgot all about meeting Clark at the Talon. Not that she definitely believed the lake was haunted. The 'witnesses' were probably the victims of a few rumors, weird noises, and their own overactive imaginations. Still, the chance that there was something to the story was enough to excite her, to want to check things out to see what was what.  
  
Until she found Lex in that hallway. After that, chasing a ghost that probably didn't exist didn't seem quite as exciting.   
  
And she didn't know any more about what was going on with Lex now than she did before. She'd gotten him to admit that something strange had, in fact, happened to him yesterday, which was a start. But, besides that, what did she know? That he didn't think it would happen again? That he had a headache which might, or might not, be connected to his blackout? So, not much.  
  
Maybe she could have learned more if Lex hadn't gone off to talk with Lana in her office. But Chloe doubted it.   
  
"I don't know whether the lake is haunted or not," Pete saud, "but I wouldn't count it out. After all, this is Smallville. Which is just a few miles down the road from the Twilight Zone."  
  
Conversation ceased as the movie started. But, as much as Chloe liked the horror flick, she found her mind wandering. For some reason, she couldn't stop thinking about what Pete said. The Twilight Zone. Not the show itself, but the title. Twilight Zone. Twilight Zone.  
  
When fifteen minutes passed, and those two words were all she could think about, Chloe frowned. Maybe her brain was playing a game of word association, trying to remind her of something. Only, she had no clue what that might be.  
  
When another fifteen minutes passed, and those words were still nagging at her, Chloe's eyes narrowed. It was getting a little frustating. Like she had a word on the tip of your tongue, but just couldn't spit it out.  
  
Twilight Zone. Twilight Zone.  
  
Twilight. Midnight. Nightmare.  
  
No, that wasn't it.  
  
Zone. Endzone. Ozone. Zoning. Zoning out.  
  
_Zone out!_  
  
Chloe gasped as the memory clicked into place.   
  
"Oh, my God!" she exclaimed, eyes doubling in size.  
  
Fortunatley, they'd reached a particularly gruesome scene in the movie, and the guys were too busy making exclamations of their own to notice hers.  
  
"Whoa!" Clark looked away from the TV screen. "That's just…"  
  
"Nasty!" Pete agreed, a look of happy disgust on his face.  
  
Chloe barely heard them. Her mind raced, jumping from one amazing possibility to the next. It couldn't be. It wasn't possible. Was it?  
  
The young reporter wondered if the guys would notice if she abandonded them and the movie for her laptop. Probably.   
  
Crossing her arms and legs, Chloe wondered if she could really sit here, doing nothing with the information she'd just remembered, for another hour. As happy as she'd been for the guys to come over, she was now impatient for them to leave. Because she had an article to find!  
  
*****  
  
"I'm sorry, Clark," Lex said. Cell phone pressed to his ear, he paced his study. "But I'm swamped. I'll probably be working on these reports all day."   
  
"That's too bad, Lex," Clark said. He sounded sincerely disappointed. "Well, maybe I can come over tomorrow."  
  
"We'll see," Lex said, noncommittly. The way his head was pounding, he doubted he'd be any more in the mood for company tomorrow than he was today. Lex ran his free hand across the back of his neck, trying to alleviate some of the in the tight muscles. "I'll call if I have some free time."  
  
"Okay," Clark sighed. "And be careful, Lex. You know what they say about all work and no play."  
  
"It's one of the pathways to success." For the first time that morning, Lex quirked a smile.   
  
The teen-ager groaned. "I knew you were going to say something like that."  
  
After hanging up, Lex tossed the phone onto his desk. Hands in his pockets, too on edge to sit down, he continued to pace. And his mind went over yesterdays events once more.  
  
Again, he told himself there was no way he'd heard Chloe Sullivan's heart beating. That was something a normal person just couldn't do without the aid of a stethoscope.  
  
Then again, normal people didn't see imaginary wild animals in the middle of their bedrooms, either.   
  
Lex tried to think of the problem logically, to look at the facts. And he couldn't ignore the fact that the only times he'd heard the sound was when Chloe was nearby. Or that the tempo of the pounding had changed, had gotten faster, when Chloe was startled by the cup breaking.  
  
Lex pressed his fingers to his temple, which had become a familiar gesture over the past few days. Either he'd heard Chloe's heart beating, or he'd imagine hearing it. And he didn't know which possibility worried him more.  
  
"Mr. Luthor."   
  
Startled, Lex swung around to face the door. He'd been so lost in thought, he hadn't heard it open.  
  
Lex stood straight, wiped all expression off of his face. "Yes?"  
  
"There's a Chloe Sullivan here to see you, sir," his employee said.  
  
Speak of the devil.  
  
Lex frowned. He wasn't in the mood to answer questions today. He certainly didn't intend to tell Chloe Sullivan the true extent of his problems. Still, he couldn't avoid her forever. Maybe there was more he could do to satisfy her curiosity. Perhaps tell her he'd made an appointment to see a doctor in Metropolis. Then, after his imaginary examination, he'd tell her he'd been given a clean bill of health.   
  
"Send her in."  
  
As the man left, leaving the door open, Lex rounded his desk. Dropping into the chair, he tried to assume an easy, relaxed pose. Hands folded in front of his chest, he closed his eyes and waited.  
  
Prompted by some spark of scientific curiosity, Lex wondered if he'd be able to hear her approach. He listened, tried to pick up the sound of a heartbeat. But he heard nothing. Which could be good or bad, depending on how you looked at it.  
  
"Mr. Luthor."  
  
Opening his eyes, Lex stood. "Chloe," he said, his smile polite but distant. "Please, come in."  
  
"Thanks." Closing the door, Chloe walked into the room. As she sat down, Lex studied her, tried to gauge her mood. He'd expected her to seem determined, resolute. Instead, she simply looked…happy? Excited? She was smiling, and there was a sparkle in her eyes.   
  
Lex re-took his seat. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"  
  
"Probably not what you think," Chloe said. "I bet you think I'm here to badger you some more about what's going on with you, right?"  
  
"The thought had occurred to me."  
  
"Well, I don't have to." And she grinned. "Because I already know."  
  
Lex's brows arched in surprise. "I beg your pardon."  
  
"Let me see." Eyes narrowed, she looked him over. "You've been having trouble lately. Food's too spicy. Lights too bright. Sounds too loud. Smells you usually don't even notice are so strong, they make you naseuous. I bet your sense of touch is off the charts too. Am I right?"  
  
Lex sat completely still, trying to keep the astonishment off of his face. He hadn't told anyone about his condition. Yet, somehow, Chloe Sullivan had just given him a pretty accurate run-down of his 'symptoms'.  
  
His expression guarded, eyes wary, Lex leaned back in his chair. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"Well, this is where it gets interesting. You see, a few months ago, I was doing research for a story when I came across this article by an anthropologist named Blair Sandburg. Apparantly, he's been studying something most of the academic community—at least, the few people who've heard of it—think is a myth. But he thinks it's true."  
  
"Fascinating." Lex's voice was bone dry. "What does this have to do with me?"  
  
"I'm getting to that." The young reporter leaned forward in her seat. "See, I pretty much forgot about the article. Then, yesterday, it all clicked into place. You could smell my perfume, even though I'm sure it had faded. You heard the really embarrassing thing I mumbled over the music. And you read the expiration date on the Tylonol bottle, in dim lighting, from across the table. When you think about it, it all makes since."  
  
Lex frowned, displeased at how much he'd revealed without even realizing. He had to be more careful. Couldn't let something like that happen in front of his father.  
  
"Let me get this straight." Lex put just the right amount of disbelief in his voice. "You think I have heightened senses?"  
  
Chloe's smile was serene, certain. "I don't have proof, but it all fits." Standing, she pulled several sheets of paper out of her purse. "See, Blair Sandburg's study is based on a monograph by Richard Burton."  
  
"I take it you don't mean the actor."  
  
"Nope. I'm talkin' the 19th century explorer." With a flourish, she laid the print out on his desk. "Burton claimed that several of the pre-civilized tribes he visited had a guardian or watchman. A Sentinel. And what made Sentinels so special was that"—she paused, giving him a significant look—"all five of their senses were heightened."  
  
Lex blinked once, the only sign of his surprise. "Sounds interesting."  
  
"Oh, it is. See, a tribe with a Sentinel had a much better chance of survival than one without." Her focus on her findings, Chloe seemed not to realize when she sat on the edge of his desk. "He could use his senses to help them hunt for food, to hear enemies approaching from a distance. They could even sniff the air and tell a really bad storm was coming."  
  
Lex's agile mind considered all of the possibilies. It seemed fantastic, impossible. A myth with about as much substance as the Easter Bunny. But, if this was true, it would mean he wasn't losing his mind. Wouldn't it?  
  
Lex shook his head. He didn't believe in fairytales. And he wasn't about to use one to try to explain away his problems.  
  
"You think I'm the genetic throw-back to some pre-civilized…super hero." This time, the disbelief in his voice was real.  
  
"Well, sort of," Chloe said. "According to Blair Sandburg, a Sentinel is born with their abilities but, sometimes, they're dormant. If a tribe believed they had a dormant Sentinel on their hands, they'd send him off on his own for weeks, even months. They thought his struggle to survive on his own, to hunt, find shelter, avoid wild animals or nearby enemies, or just to deal with not having anyone else to talk to for who knew how long, would bring his abilities online. Now, I don't know what your time on that island was like, but…"   
  
And Lex's thoughts went back to the island. Months of isolation…not counting the figment of his imagination that tried to kill him. Half starved, most of his day spent searching for food. Being boiled alive under the relentless sun. Battered by the wrath of tropical storms.  
  
"That doesn't prove anything," Lex insisted. He laid the papers on the desk. "It doesn't mean…"  
  
"And there's one more thing." Chloe reached across the desk and turned to page 3 of the article. Several paragraphs were highlighted in yellow. "It's something Sandburg calls the 'zone-out factor'. When a Sentinel focuses on one sense, he can completely lose track of the outside world. I mean, all the other senses shut down. I'm betting that's what happened to you with that painting. All of your focus was on your sense of sight. That's why you didn't hear me yelling right in your ear."   
  
Lex remembered. Falling into the painting. Getting lost in the swirls of color, the shapes, the brushstrokes. Losing control. Someone could have snuck up behind them and…Hell, they wouldn't have had to sneak. A gang of kidnappers could have approached him, made as much noise as a marching band, and he would've been none the wiser.  
  
"Sounds dangerous," he mumbled.  
  
"Which was why Sentinels didn't work alone. They had a partner. Sort of a guide. It was the Guide's job to keep the Sentinel from zoning out, and to help him develop his abilities." Chloe frowned. "Burton didn't talk much about Guides. I guess some tribal elder picked any old Joe Shmo to watch the Sentinel's back. But Sandburg put it this way. The Sentinel protected the tribe, and the Guide protected the Sentinel."  
  
As Lex stared at the article, a flood of emotions washed over him. Relief. Shock. Fascination. Chloe was right. It did make sense. Or was he just grasping at straws?   
  
"Have you told anyone about this, have you?" Lex asked.  
  
Chloe rolled her eyes. "No, I haven't told anyone. And, in case you're wondering, I'm not even going to write about it for the _Torch_." She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "Well, unless you…"  
  
"No."  
  
"I thought so." She sighed. "Anyway, unless I get some kind of public confirmation from you, how can I prove any of this? It would be like me telling everyone I think you're Santa Claus."  
  
Lex smirked. "I actually look very good in red."  
  
Chloe let out a startled laugh. "I'll bet." She reached over to turn the article to the first page. "Anyway, that's pretty much it. The rest is just some mumbo jumbo about spirit animals."  
  
Lex glanced up at her, his gaze sharp. "Spirit animals?"   
  
"Yeah. Lots of cultures believed in them and, according to Burton, most of the Sentinels he met thought they had one. Some even claimed to see their spirit animals on occasion. Of course, they were probably using various substances now considered illegal to help them have visions and talk to dearly departed relatives. So I'm guessing that part of the myth _is_ a myth."  
  
Absently, Lex nodded. But his mind was on the cougar in his bedroom. The fox in his dream.  
  
"Still," Chloe continued, "I'll probably look into this spirit animal thing a little more once I get back from the lake."  
  
Despite being distracted by his own thoughts, Lex was listening closely enough to ask, "The lake?"  
  
"Yeah." Suddenly, she looked embarrassed. "I'm going ghost hunting this afternoon. It seems some of my fellow students are convinced the place is haunted."  
  
"You don't believe in ghosts?" he asked, mildly surprise. After all, she'd have to have an open mind to come up with some of her meteor rock theories.  
  
"Let's just say, I haven't come across enough proof to convince me ghosts are real. Then again, I didn't have any proof Sentinels were real, either. Until now."  
  
"Yes," Lex said, mind wandering once again. "Until now."  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)  
  
  
**_Another Author's Note:_**_ Blair wrote the article Chloe found before the SENTINEL series began. But the article has a little more information than Blair actually knew pre-SENTINEL. (For example, while Blair knew about the zone outs, he didn't find out about the spirit animals until after he'd met Jim, his Sentinel.) So, consider it me taking some dramatic license._


	7. Chapter Seven

**PART SEVEN**  
  
  
Chloe wasn't much of a nature girl, but even she had to admit this place was beautiful.  
  
The woods around the lake were thick and, for the moment, untouched. The leaves of the trees glowed emerald green in the afternoon sunlight. A soft breeze made the wildflowers—blue and yellow, pink and purple—sway from side to side. The air was filled with the trill of birdsong. It was the kind of place that inspired people to write poetry and love songs.  
  
In no hurry to reach the lake itself, Chloe took her time, walking at a leisurely pace. If there really was a ghost, it wasn't going anywhere. Besides, it was hard to believe anything spooky or ominous could happen around here.  
  
As she made her way through the maze of trees, Chloe wondered how Lex was doing. Actually, he'd taken the whole Sentinel thing pretty well. If someone had told her she was—as he put it—a throwback to a pre-civilized super hero, she would have been bouncing off the walls. But Lex had remained calm the entire time. And, most importantly, he'd believed her.   
  
Then again, he'd probably thought he was going crazy until now. The Sentinel thing might seem farfetched, but at least it was an explanation. And a logical explanation, if you looked at it with an open mind.  
  
Stepping over an exposed tree root, Chloe grinned. This morning had been fun. Yeah, she took the article to Lex mostly to help him. But considering how guarded and secretive he was, it had been kind of satisfying to reveal that she knew more about him than he knew about himself. That, despite all of his stonewalling, she'd been able to find the truth.  
  
Question was, what was he going to do now? Yeah, being a Sentinel sounded cool. But, from what she could tell, Lex's senses were out of control, which probably wasn't a lot of fun. He'd even admitted that, because of them, he had a constant headache. Which just didn't seem right. Chloe couldn't imagine a Sentinel being able to protect the tribe if he was in pain all the time.  
  
Lex's headache probably came from his senses being all over the charts. Right now, he had zero control of them, and his brain was being overloaded. Until he gained that control, his senses would be under assault 24/7, and he really would go crazy.   
  
"He has to learn to suppress them," she muttered, talking out loud to help herself think. "To keep them at normal levels until he consciously decides to use them. Otherwise, going to Metropolis, or even the Talon, will eventually be out of the question. The minute he set foot in the place, he'd be crushed under a barrage of sights, sounds, smells." Chloe frown was thoughtful. "Maybe some kind of self-hypnosis would help. It did when I had that tooth ache."  
  
Mind running through the possibilities, Chloe never stopped to wonder why she was so preoccupied with helping Lex solve his problem. It just seemed…natural. Like it was exactly what she should be doing.  
  
Finally, Chloe spotted the lake up ahead, through the trees. She paused, taking a moment to admire the way the sunlight made the water sparkle. And that's when she realized someone was already there.  
  
Slowly, still hidden by the trees, Chloe approached, trying to make a lot of noise. If she'd stumbled across a skinny-dipping party, being able to leave without anyone ever knowing she had been there would cut down on the embarrassment for everybody.  
  
But it wasn't a skinny-dipping party. Instead, she saw two ten year old boys—one blond, one with a head full of red curls—working industriously. It looked like they'd tossed a wire across the limb of a tree. At one end, they'd attached a length of fabric, diaphanous and almost transparent. When Blondie pulled on the wire, the fabric lifted in the air. And the way it fluttered in the breeze, it almost looked alive.  
  
"I think we should stick with what we've been doing already." Rusty said, shaking his head. "Because this is gonna look so fake."  
  
"Not at night, it won't," Blondie insisted. "Plus, when this drops don't on whoever's here, you really think they're gonna stick around to take a closer look. No way!" He grinned with satisfaction. "They're really going to think this place is haunted after this."  
  
As she realized what she was seeing, a wry smile twisted Chloe's lips. It looked like she'd found the ghost of the lake after all. Or, at least, two young boys who were doing a pretty good job of hoaxing the entire town. Which, if you asked her, made for an even better story.  
  
Reaching into her bag for her digital camera, Chloe moved closer…and tripped. For a moment, she struggled to keep her balance, but gravity had other ideas. Finally, she fell…right into the clearing.  
  
"Dammit!" she hissed in disgust. She pushed up into a sitting position. "It's gotta be the boots."  
  
Glancing up, she saw the two boys staring at her. They look horrified, like a couple of deer caught in the headlights of an eighteen-wheeler.   
  
Chloe offered them a weak smile. "Uh, hi."  
  
The sound of her voice seemed to break them out of their paralysis. They ran, heading for the trees on the other side of the clearing.  
  
"Hey, wait!" Chloe called, not at all surprised when they didn't. Sighing, she stood up. "Oh, crap!" Then, she took off after them.  
  
As she ran into the trees, Chloe was surprised by how much wilder and thicker the woods were on this side. There was a path, but it was narrow and overgrown. Branches from the trees and bushes on either side slapped at her arms, and she was in danger of falling with each step.  
  
The two boys seemed to be having much less trouble. Obviously familiar with this poor excuse for a path, they were pulling ahead of her.  
  
"Would you just stop!" she called through gritted teeth. But, of course, they didn't listen.  
  
Chloe's legs strained as she chased them up a hill. When her bag slammed into her leg again, she grabbed the strap to hold it still. Fast running out of breath, she considered giving up the chase. She'd gotten a good look at the kids, and would probably recognize them if she saw them again. And Smallville was a small town, after all.  
  
Then, what she'd expected to happen all along happened. She tripped, her body falling to the side. She winced, fully expecting to slam into a tree.  
  
Only, she didn't. Instead, she fell through a canopy of branches and leaves. One that had been hiding a steep drop.   
  
She hit the ground with a soft 'ooomph', the wind knocked out of her lungs. She didn't make a sound when her head slammed into a rock that was protruding from the ground.  
  
Stars dancing before her eyes, she rolled down the short slope. Within seconds, she reached the bottom, landing on her back. Head throbbing, watching the sky dim above her. And, just before she lost consciousness, she saw something out of the corner of her eye.   
  
A flash of reddish gold fur.  
  
*****  
  
"Hey," Tommy said, stumbling to a stop. "Where'd she go?"  
  
Panting for breath, Craig looked back. There was no sign of the girl who had been chasing them. "Maybe she gave up."  
  
"I guess so." The redhead gave his friend an anxious look. "You think she's gonna tell anybody she saw us?"  
  
"How can she? She doesn't even know who we are. " Craig said, trying to sound more confident than he felt. "Let's just get out of here."  
  
As the two boys headed home, they didn't talk. They were too worried about how much trouble they were going to get into.  
  
*****  
  
The dream was familiar, but different. He was in the same densely wooded forest. The trees were just as thick, just as tall. But the golden glow of the afternoon sun was gone, replaced by the blue haze of twilight. The air was still, smothered under a blanket of oppressive silence.  
  
Lex studied his surroundings, a feeling of dread lodging in his chest. Something was wrong.  
  
Suddenly, a growl cut through the quiet.   
  
Startled, Lex turned. It was the cougar, standing close enough to touch. As agitated as it had been before. Its teeth were bared, its tail whipping through the air.  
  
Lex's heart raced. Only, it wasn't fear he was feeling. It was…urgency.   
  
With another roar, the cougar turned, took off down the path Lex had taken in his dreams so many times before. And, acting on instinct, the man ran after the beast.   
  
Somehow, Lex knew the cougar wasn't running as fast as it could. That it didn't want to lose Lex, but to lead him somewhere. Still, he could barely keep up with the animal.  
  
Finally, they reached the clearing, which was bathed in moonlight.   
  
Surprised, Lex stopped at the edge of the trees. The fox was there, lying on its side, eyes closed. It was impossible to tell whether it was asleep or unconscious.  
  
The cougar approached the smaller animal, its powerful body tense. A low, feral purr issuing from its chest, it lowered its head, pressed its nose to the fox's shoulder.  
  
And the fox morphed. Its body stretched, elongated. Its reddish gold fur vanished, becoming alabaster skin. Its paws became hands.   
  
In seconds, the fox was gone, and Chloe Sullivan was in its place. She was lying naked on the hard ground, pale skin seeming to glow in the moonlight. She was tucked into a half-fetal position, eyes closed. And a patch of her golden blond hair was matted to her head by blood.  
  
Eyes wide with shock, Lex took a step into the clearing…  
  
*****  
  
He woke with a start, almost falling out of the chair in which he'd fallen asleep. Chest heavy with that same dread, that same urgency, Lex stood. He didn't, for a single moment, think that the dream didn't mean anything. That it was just a dream. Didn't have time for doubt.  
  
Chloe was in trouble.  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)


	8. Chapter Eight

**PART EIGHT**  
  
  
Kneeling down, Lex picked up the thin, nearly transparent fabric. "What the hell?" he muttered, as he touched the wire that had been punched through one corner of the cloth. His eyes tracked the wire up to the tree branch it had been tossed over, then down the other side. With an angry shake of his head, Lex tossed the fabric to the ground and stood up. He wondered briefly if this…rig had something to do with Chloe, then decided it didn't matter. What mattered was finding her.  
  
Eyes squinted against the sun reflecting off the water, Lex walked to the edge of the lake.   
  
After he woke from the dream, Lex called the Sullivan house, but got no answer. As he hung up, his mind was already compiling a list of people who might know where Chloe was. Clark. Or Lana. Lex was even willing to call Pete Ross, to endure the teen's antagonism, if it would help him find the young reporter.  
  
Then, he'd remembered what she'd said this morning.  
  
_"I'm going ghost hunting this afternoon."_  
  
From what she said as she left, he'd assumed she was going straight from the mansion to the lake. Perhaps she'd gotten into some kind of trouble while investigating her story. If he could really believe the dream, she was lying out here somewhere, injured and unconscious.  
  
Sighing, Lex pinched the bridge of his nose. He'd walked halfway around the lake and, so far, had seen no sign of Chloe. Just trees, rocks, a few old soda cans and, eventually, the fabric and wire.   
  
He just hadn't considered how big the area was. All he could think of was following the dream. Proving that he wasn't losing his mind. That his senses were going crazy for a reason. That the animal he saw in his bedroom wasn't a delusion.  
  
Now, he realized it could take hours to search these woods. Especially alone.   
  
"Damn it!" Lex cursed through gritted teeth. His fists clenched in frustration. "You brought me here. What the hell am I supposed to do now?"  
  
But the cougar didn't magically appear to lead him to where Chloe was. He was all alone, and feeling more like an idiot with each passing minute.  
  
Taking a deep breath, Lex closed his eyes. Maybe he was going crazy after all. The Sentinel myth was pure fiction, and he'd been a fool to believe it for even a second. The dream had been a lie. At this very moment, Chloe Sullivan was at home. Or at the school, working on her precious paper. She was safe and sound and…  
  
Suddenly, Lex's head cocked to one side. There was something there. Something soft and faint, at the very edge of his sense of hearing.  
  
Standing up straight, Lex listened, focused. And the sound grew louder, stronger.  
  
_Thump-thump. Thump-thump._  
  
Opening his eyes, Lex turned towards the sound. "Chloe," he said, voice filled with certainty.  
  
Pushing away all of his doubts, Lex followed the sound. As he reached the trees, he saw a path, narrow and overgrown, but there.  
  
Mouth set in a determined line, he entered the trees. He ignored the rocks that scuffed his handmade shoes, the branches that pulled at his jacket, scratching the leather. He followed the heartbeat down the path, up the hill, until…  
  
"Chloe!" he called, eyes searching in vain for some sign of the young woman. Bending down, Lex picked up her bag. The one he'd seen her routing through for Tylenol just yesterday.   
  
Instinctively, like it was the most natural thing in the world, Lex focused on the heartbeat.   
  
_Thump-thump. Thump-thump._  
  
It was louder, closer. She had to be here, somewhere.  
  
A soft groan, one most people wouldn't have heard, made his head whip to the side. Standing, Lex reached out, pushed aside the canopy of leaves that he'd mistaken for a bush. He found a sharp drop, a short incline. And lying at the bottom of that incline was Chloe Sullivan.   
  
Cursing under his breath, Lex hurried towards her. The girl was lying on her back, unconscious. And a patch of her golden blond hair was matted to her head by blood.  
  
Dropping the bag on the ground, Lex knelt at her side.  
  
"Chloe," he said. "Can you hear me?"  
  
There was no response.  
  
Eyes narrowed, Lex bent closer to study the wound…  
  
And that's when the smell of her blood hit him. It was coppery and sweet and sharp. And overwhelming.  
  
Lex could feel his other senses vanishing one by one. His vision dimmed, darkness starting at the edges and spreading to the center. Sounds faded; the heartbeat that led him here grew faint. He was getting lost again, but he couldn't seem to stop it. He was losing touch with the outside world, leaving nothing but the smell of blood.  
  
"Pull…back."  
  
The sound of that weak, halting voice was like someone snapping their fingers in front of his face. The dimness clouding his vision receded. The sound of Chloe's heartbeat returned. But the smell of blood was still so strong.  
  
Gasping for air, Lex looked down. Chloe's eyes were open, but only partially. She was looking at him, but her eyes were glazed. And, somehow, she was holding his hand.  
  
"Pull back," she mumbled, sounding for all the world like someone talking in there sleep. When she blinked, it seemed to be a struggle to open her eyes again. "You'll zone if you don't…pull back."  
  
"Chloe," he began. "Can you…"  
  
"Which one?" she interrupted.  
  
"Smell," Lex answered, without even thinking. Then frowned at the word that had popped, unbidden, out of his mouth.  
  
Chloe's eyes were closed again, but she was nodding slowly.  
  
"Don't breathe through…your nose," she mumbled, every word an effort. Pausing, she wet her lips. "Cut the smell…off."  
  
It was so simple, Lex almost rolled his eyes. As he followed her instructions, he found he was no longer overwhelmed by the smell of her blood. No longer in danger of getting lost.  
  
His gaze thoughtful, Lex looked down at the young woman. At the most, she was semi-conscious. In her current condition, she couldn't possibly be aware of what she was saying. Yet, somehow, she'd managed to help him. To guide him.  
  
Pushing his thoughts aside for later consideration, Lex started to sit back.  
  
"No!" Chloe said, her voice the strongest it had been. As she struggled to open her eyes, her grip on his hand tightened. "Don't leave."  
  
"I won't," Lex promised. "I'm just going to call for help."  
  
With his free hand, Lex reached into the inner pocket of his jacket. As he pulled out his cell phone, he saw something out of the corner of his eye.  
  
It was the cougar, standing next to the largest tree in the clearing, watching with its wise, feline eyes. And standing by its side was the fox. It was awake, and uninjured. And seemingly unafraid of the larger, more powerful beast that towered over it.  
  
A groan from Chloe drew his attention. Turning, Lex saw that she'd lost consciousness again.   
  
A worried frown puckering his brow, Lex dialed. As he pressed the phone to his ear, Lex looked towards the tree. And wasn't even surprised to find that the cougar and fox had vanished.  
  
  
(TO BE CONTINUED)


	9. Chapter Nine

**PART NINE**  
  
  
"How are you feeling?"  
  
Startled, Chloe looked up from notepad she was scribbling on. A new visitor stood in the doorway to her hospital room.   
  
"Hi, Lex," she smiled. "I feel fine, thanks. In fact, I'll probably be going home tomorrow morning."   
  
"That's good to hear." Lex stepped further into the room and closed the door. "Considering the fall you took, you were lucky not to have been hurt worse than you were."  
  
"Yep. All I got was a lucky mild concussion, not to mention bruises in every color of the rainbow. But I didn't break anything, like my neck." She pointed to the small, white bandage on her head. "And they even managed to stitch me up without cutting too much of my hair."  
  
"Which is, of course, the most important thing." With a wry smile, Lex lowered himself into the chair next to the bed.   
  
Chloe grinned. "Hey, the last thing I need after my ordeal is bad hair. And, believe me, I know how lucky I am that I wasn't hurt worse." Slowly, her grin faded. "In fact, according to the doctor, if you hadn't found me, I might never have fully have regained consciousness, and I'd probably still be lying in that clearing. Which makes me wonder." She hit the young millionaire with her most penetrating, no-nonsense stare. The kind seasoned reporters used to get the answers to tough questions. "How did you find me, Lex?"   
  
When Lex opened his mouth to answer, she held up a hand. "And don't give me that fairytale you fed my dad and Clark. They might believe you went to the lake 'to think'"—she made air quotes—"and it was a happy accident that you stumbled across me, but I don't. So, what really happened?"  
  
But it seemed her penetrating, no-nonsense stare needed work, because Lex ignored the question altogether. "I have some interesting news," he said.  
  
Chloe sighed. She should've known it wouldn't be that easy.  
  
"Two young boys," Lex continued, "Tommy Fielding and Craig Ebert, confessed to being behind the ghost scare."   
  
"What?" Chloe eyes widened in surprise. "When?"  
  
"They officially turned themselves in this morning. Apparently, after hearing what happened to you while you were chasing them, they were overcome by remorse and confessed to their parents."  
  
"Wow. I guess you can't underestimate the power of guilt."  
  
"True. Although I sometimes think guilt is highly overrated."  
  
Chloe rolled her eyes, which caused I minor head twinge. Wincing, she closed her eyes for a second. When she opened them again, she saw Lex staring at her notepad.  
  
"A white noise generator?" he asked, one brow peaked in curiosity.   
  
"Oh, yeah." As she remembered her idea, Chloe grinned with renewed excitement. "I was thinking about the problems you're having with your senses, and I remembered that some people who live in big cities use white noise generators at night to block out the sounds from outside. It helps them sleep. Now, I'd need my laptop to be sure, but I think you can get portable generators, which might help control your sense of hearing when you go out in public. They're probably expensive, but I'm thinking that won't be a problem for you."   
  
Chuckling to herself, Chloe made some notes on her notepad. She didn't like to brag, but she thought it was a brilliant idea.  
  
A full minute of silence had passed before Chloe realized Lex hadn't said anything. When she looked up, she found Lex staring at her, a frown creasing his brow.  
  
"What?" Chloe said, feeling a twinge of doubt. "You don't think it will work?"  
  
"No, I think it might," Lex said. "In fact, you've been a great help the last few days. You pulled me out of the zone at the Talon. You brought me that article, which convinced me I wasn't delusional. Then, at the lake…" He paused, his gaze thoughtful. "Do you remember me finding you?"  
  
A little taken aback by the change of subject, Chloe shrugged. "Um, barely. I think I woke up long enough to see your face, but that's pretty much it. Why?"  
  
He took in her answer, considered it carefully, then nodded as if she'd confirmed something for him. But instead of telling her what, all he said was, "Hmmm."   
  
"What?" Chloe demanded, more than a little frustrated. "What does 'hmmm' mean?"   
  
But he didn't answer. Instead, his customary smirk curling his lips, he stood up. "I'm sorry my visit has to be so short. I'm expecting my father in an hour and, knowing him, he's probably already at the mansion. But, before I leave, I do have a favor to ask."  
  
Chloe gritted her teeth so hard, her jaw popped. It was obvious the man liked doing stuff like this. He gave you just enough to let you know he had something interesting to say, and then he didn't say it. She pitied his employees. If they had an ounce of curiosity in their bodies, dealing with him on a day-to-day basis would…  
  
"I'd like you to act as my Guide," Lex said, interrupting her mental rant.  
  
Chloe was so surprised, her eyebrows disappeared under her bangs. As frustration was shock, all she could say was, "Huh?"  
  
Smiling at her reaction, he continued. "In order to learn to use my abilities, I need to practice, to learn control. Considering what will probably happen once I start consciously trying to focus on my senses, I'd like someone there to pull me out if I zone. Since I don't want to tell anyone else about my…abilities, and you already know, you're the logical choice."  
  
She supposed that made sense. She could just imagine some member of Lex's staff—or, worse, his father—walking into a room to find him staring at a wall, then being unable to 'wake' him up for 10 or 15 minutes. It didn't take a genius to figure out what they'd think. And they wouldn't be good thoughts, either.   
  
"I see your point," Chloe agreed. "But I don't know any more about Guiding a Sentinel than what I read in that article."   
  
"Neither do I. But I think I can figure it out, especially if someone else is there for me to bounce ideas off of. Besides," Lex said as he tapped her notepad, "you already have some good ideas about dealing with my senses."   
  
As Chloe considered his words, she nibbled at her bottom lip. She had to admit she was fascinated by this whole Sentinel thing. She didn't even care that she couldn't print a story about it in the _Torch_. This was about her own curiosity. All of a sudden, learning more about Sentinels was all she could think about.  
  
But, after hours on the Internet, she hadn't found more than a few brief mentions of the "myth" of the Sentinel. She knew that, if she wanted to know more, she'd have to get the information from Lex. But after giving him that article by Blair Sandburg, she'd figured getting him to tell her anything would be like pulling teeth.   
  
Now here he was, offering her a front row seat to the entire thing. She'd be crazy to pass up this opportunity.  
  
But her excitement was tempered by uncertainty. It wasn't like she could take a correspondence course on how to be a Guide. What if she did something wrong? Were specific things they needed to do to help their Sentinel develop? Were there things they absolutely shouldn't do because they would hurt the Sentinel, make his condition worse?  
  
"Well?" Lex asked, not a hint of impatience in his voice. In fact, he sounded only mildly interested in her answer. Like, if she said no, he'd just find someone else to help him.  
  
Chloe sighed. She really wanted to know more. Plus, while she was helping him, she might just find out how he'd really found her at the lake.  
  
Coming to a decision, Chloe smiled. "When do you want to start?"  
  
*****  
  
As Lex paused outside the door to Chloe's hospital room, relief coursed through him. For a moment, he wasn't sure she'd agree to help him, despite her curiosity. Despite the little hints he'd dropped that he had interesting information to share. Things he wouldn't tell her outright, but might let slip while she was helping him.   
  
Hands in his pockets, Lex leaned back against the wall. Maybe he should have told her the rest. The spirit animals. The dreams. The fact that he could sometimes hear her heartbeat when she was nearby.   
  
But no. As open as she was to the idea of meteor mutants, he didn't know if she'd accept this. Because Lex had come to conclusion that Chloe was wrong. Not just any Joe Shmo could Guide a Sentinel. Just as some people were meant to be Sentinels, some were meant to be Guides. In fact, there might be several potential Guides in Smallville, but the cougar had chosen the fox. And it seemed the cat had chosen wisely. For the past few days, Chloe had been Guiding him without even realizing it. Imagine what she could do if she put her mind to it.   
  
Standing erect, Lex pushed his hands into his pockets. He just didn't know Chloe well enough to know how she'd react to all of this. It was one thing for her to be given the chance to study a "myth" brought to life. It was another to hear that, thanks to two spirit animals that she'd written off as 'mumbo jumbo', she was now mystically connected to a man she barely knew.  
  
"Oh, damn, I forgot!" came the exclamation from inside the room. With his Sentinel hearing, Lex heard a pencil scratching against paper. "Gotta look into self-hypnosis. And visualization. I bet that would work, too."  
  
Smiling, Lex walked down the corridor. He had the feeling things were about to get very interesting.  
  
  
THE END  
  
  
**Author's Note:** I really think this story might have a sequel. I already have several ideas. But writing this did help me with my writer's block. So I'd like to get back to some other stories I've kinda left hanging. I'd also like to thank you guys for reading, and for the great feedback. I hope you liked the fic. I love all the SENTINEL lore, and weaving some of it into the world of SMALLVILLE was much fun!


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